Route Tokyo-Hokkaido

Hi Maya,

Sounds like a great plan, Tokyo - Hokkaido is a long trip and planning in a couple of stops is a great idea.

Places I would considering stopping at are Sendai (you can also visit Matsushima and Yamadera from there, going more to the north, Hirosaki and Hachinohe also make for good stops. Once you reach the upper part of the Japanese main island you could also cross the channel and stay a night or two at Hakodate.

Hope this helps!
Daniel

Thanks Daniel, great help!

I know that Sendai is a huge city and we prefer, because of the kids, to stop in a smaller and more pastoral places.
Any other suggestions for these kind of stops on our way to Hokkaido?

Also, what kind of train ticket will we need? One that allows us to get on and off the train every couple of days...
Is there a family ticket at all?

Thanks again,
Maya

Hi Maya,

Depending on what other travel you do, consider using a 7 JR Pass. It quickly pays of if you travel all the way to Sapporo and allows for unlimited train rides nation wide. There's no family pass but children below the age of 12 travel for half price and below the age of 6 are free.

To be honest, the trip Tokyo - Hokkaido through Tohoku is not the most interesting to make. If you are looking for a more rural place to stay perhaps Kitakami could be nice. An other nice place to stay is Nyuto Onsen however getting there can be a bit hard.

Hope this helps!
Daniel

Hi again,

We are 4 adults and 2 kids under 6yo going to -
Tokyo - Hiraizumi - Aomori – Hakodate - Sapporo

How do I book this ticket, I understand foreigners have special discount when booking from abroad?
What is the price for these tickets?

Thank you,
Maya

Hi Maya,

When you have your JR Pass go to any JR station and tell the staff where (and when) you wish to travel. They will reserve the seats for you and print the tickets. It is possible to book tickets once you are in Japan and have exchanged your JR Pass.